DANIEL KAHNEMAN, a Nobel laureate in economic science in 2002 and a senior scholar at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, is the award recipient. Kahneman is widely regarded for his work integrating insights about decision-making from psychological research into economics and is largely credited with the creation of behavioral economics with the late Stanford psychologist AMOS TVERSKY. The SAGE-CASBS Award honors scholars such as Kahneman who have made significant contributions to disciplines beyond the recipient’s chosen field of study and to society as a whole.

Daniel Kahneman received the inaugural SAGE-CASBS award Thursday from Iris Litt, left, director of the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, and Sara Miller McCune, founder and executive chairman of SAGE. (Photos by Matt Beardsley)

“I realize the significance of the SAGE-CASBS Award and am very touched to be receiving it,” said Kahneman, who was a fellow at CASBS in 1978. “There is a broad community of behavioral and social scientists which the CASBS has done much to bring together over the years. An award shared by our diverse disciplines highlights the truth that we have much in common.”

Kahneman’s bestselling 2011 book, Thinking Fast and Slow, takes readers on a tour of the mind and explains the two systems that drive the way we think – one that is fast, intuitive and emotional, and the other slower, deliberative and logical.

Kahneman accepted the award at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences Summit on July 11 at Stanford, after he delivered the keynote speech.

“Daniel Kahneman’s work combining the behavioral and economic fields of study has resulted in significant real-life applications for all types of decision makers,” said SARA MILLER MCCUNE, SAGE founder and executive chairman.

Additionally, through the publication of Thinking Fast and Slow, Kahneman has taken great care to translate a lifetime of brilliant research so that it is digestible for public consumption.”

IRIS LITT, director of CASBS, said the award will call attention to scholarship that doesn’t always get the attention it deserves. “Behavioral science provides the knowledge needed to address societal issues. This award gives us the opportunity to recognize a behavioral scientist who has advanced our knowledge and understanding.”